When insanity reigns in Washington

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House Republicans, who have unlimited access to what is unquestionably the greatest health care system in the world, just don’t get it: Most Americans who are not in the health care system desperately, desperately want in.

Even if you currently have insurance, though, the Affordable Care Act does good things for you. Namely, the law:

• Ensures that all Americans with pre-existing conditions can receive health insurance coverage through a new Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan.

• Allows young adults to remain on their parents’ insurance plans until age 26.

• Ends lifetime limits on insurance coverage, as well as annual limits.

• Removes insurance company barriers to emergency services, so you can seek emergency care at a hospital that is outside your health plan’s network.

I could go on. These are the reasons that House Tea Party Republicans shut the government down. Does any of this make sense?

To the 800,000 federal workers furloughed during the shutdown, it must all seem like pure insanity.

Scott Brinton is senior editor of the Bellmore and Merrick Heralds and an adjunct professor at the Hofstra University Graduate Journalism Program. Comments? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203. Brinton’s profile and posts can be found at facebook.com/scottabrinton.

Sid Tanenbaum, who lived in Woodmere and owned a metal-stamping shop in Far Rockaway, where he was known more for his charitable ways than his two-handed set shot, has been honored for the past 30 years with a basketball tournament that raises scholarship money for students in the Five Towns.